COVID-19 screening program for students
| CATEGORY | DESCRIPTION OF CIRCUMSTANCES | TESTING REQUIRED? |
|---|---|---|
|
Group 1 |
All students who are living on campus, whether or not they are working, studying, or engaging in any other campus activities. | Yes |
|
Group 2 |
All students who are living off campus and who are coming to campus on a regular basis. |
Yes |
|
Group 3 |
Students who are living off campus and coming to campus infrequently (once or twice quarterly). | NO but these students should complete Stanford Health Check on the day they come to campus before they come to campus. |
| Group 4 | Students who are living off campus and not coming to campus ever. | NO |
An important component of Stanford's pandemic response
With the volume of testing we are ramping up, and with the ongoing supply-chain challenges that have resulted from the pandemic, the university has identified two testing systems that have FDA emergency use authorization and that utilize different supply chains. Our medical experts have reviewed the testing methodologies and are confident in their rigor.
Verily Life Sciences is conducting COVID-19 screening for students. This will include new-to-campus testing and return-from-travel testing, as well as surveillance of COVID-19 prevalence in our student community. This program is for asymptomatic individuals. Students with symptoms of COVID-19 should contact Vaden Health Services or another healthcare provider for evaluation and testing.
Testing is an important component of Stanford’s pandemic response but is not a substitute for prevention and self-care measures such as face coverings, physical distancing, hand washing, and surface hygiene. We hope that these continuing protocols and the plan for COVID screening will, together, provide support and confidence to all of you who will be coming to campus this autumn.
How to register for testing
All students in groups 1 and 2 this autumn (see table below) are required to complete Verily’s registration process.
Testing is by appointment only. Appointments can be made up to seven days in advance.
Here is what we are asking students to do:
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Use your Stanford email address to register at healthy.verily.com.
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When prompted for your home address, enter your Stanford campus address.*
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Then, schedule your initial COVID-19 test using the Verily web tool.
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Participate in testing at your scheduled time.
*Undergraduates should enter "Stanford University, Stanford, Calif., 94305."
The Verily testing site is McCaw Hall in the Arrillaga Alumni Center (view a map here). Please enter directly into McCaw Hall from Galvez Street, rather than the alumni center lobby. Entrance to exit, the test procedure for most students should take less than five minutes. Parking is available but limited; consider biking or walking. The university has placed additional bike racks along Galvez, near Memorial Way.
Initial operating hours will be Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Hours might be altered as the quarter unfolds, depending on utilization and other factors. The testing site will be closed on Labor Day, September 7.
The test involves a mid-turbinate nasal swab that is performed by the student, while being observed by a healthcare professional. Analysis is by RT-PCR, performed at a local laboratory operated by Verily. The majority of results will be available within 48 hours, but may take up to 72 hours.
Students will be notified by email from Verily and PWN Health (covid19@pwnhealth.com) when a test result is available. PWN Health is Verily’s healthcare partner. The test result can be viewed by logging into healthy.verily.com.
Important to know
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There is no cost to students to participate in this testing program.
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This program does not use health insurance information.
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Student-athletes, Hopkins Marine Station students, and some medical students will use different protocols and should follow the instructions of their respective administrative or clinical advisors.
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Asymptomatic students in quarantine should continue testing through this program.
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Students with symptoms of COVID-19 should contact Vaden Health Services or another healthcare provider for evaluation and testing.
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Optional new-to-campus and return-from-travel testing is available to partners/spouses of students who will be residing in Stanford housing assigned by Residential & Dining Enterprises (R&DE). Students should contact the Graduate Life Office (GLO) for a referral to this spouse/partner testing resource. This will be at no cost to the student or spouse/partner. Note that we are not able to conduct pediatric testing through the campus testing program.
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An FAQ page for students is available here.
Testing frequency and results
Initially, students will be tested weekly, and will receive email reminders from Verily to schedule appointments. Over time, the university may adjust the testing frequency, based on the prevalence of COVID-19 in our community. If desired, students can use Verily’s web tool to schedule one additional test each week.
As mentioned above, students will be notified by email from Verily and PWN Health (covid19@pwnhealth.com) when a test result is available. In addition, PWN Health will contact a student with positive test results by telephone within 24 hours.
Exposure notification and isolation
Vaden will follow up with the student for clinical care and exposure notification. Students will be offered a confirmatory test conducted by Vaden and processed through the Stanford Health Care Virology Lab. Students will need to start in isolation based on the initial positive result from Verily.
To coordinate isolation housing and meal delivery service, the name of a student with a positive test will be shared with campus partners, such as Residence Deans, Graduate Life Office (GLO) deans and R&DE, on a confidential, need-to-know basis. Meal delivery will be at no charge to students residing on campus.
